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Article
Publication date: 30 December 2021

Wilsa Theodore, Rhenald Kasali, Tengku Ezni Balqiah and Lily Sudhartio

This study aims to investigate the relationship between task environment, organizational agility, perceived managerial discretion and strategy implementation on unit performance.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the relationship between task environment, organizational agility, perceived managerial discretion and strategy implementation on unit performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the literature review, a structural model was developed. A 74-item questionnaire was circulated among middle managers in sales and marketing. The data collection method used purposive sampling. A total of 228 valid responses were obtained. This study was conducted in a leading pharmaceutical company in Indonesia. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

Findings

Based on the data analysis, this study shows that task environment and organizational agility act as antecedents of perceived managerial discretion, which drives strategy implementation resulting in unit performance.

Originality/value

Different from previous studies that examined the linkage of inertial forces and discretion, this research scrutinized the effects of organizational agility on perceived managerial discretion and the direct role of perceived managerial discretion on internal strategy implementation.

Details

International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, vol. 16 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6123

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 October 2011

Stephen K. Nkundabanyanga and Alfred Okwee

The purpose of this study is to establish the relationship between CSR, managerial discretion, competences, learning and efficiency and perceived corporate financial performance…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to establish the relationship between CSR, managerial discretion, competences, learning and efficiency and perceived corporate financial performance in order to establish the legitimacy and value of CSR, taking managers' perspectives in Uganda.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used quantitative, correlation and regression analyses and collected primary data through a structured questionnaire on a sample of 100 firms.

Findings

The results indicate that managerial discretion and competences, learning and efficiency are significant predictors of perceived corporate financial performance, but CSR is not. However, the results show serendipitously that managerial discretion's predictive potential of perceived corporate performance is moderated by CSR.

Result limitations/implications

The study focuses on corporate social responsibility, a concept not very well appreciated and only understood as philanthropic and not really viewed as a means for improved financial performance in Uganda.

Practical implications

Our study implies that while upholding the ideals of CSR, companies in Uganda need to enhance managerial discretion in their contracting process and develop competences, learning and efficiency in order to impact positively on performance.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the dearth of CSR literature on the African experience by examining the perceptions of managers on CSR's predictive potential of corporate financial performance in Uganda.

Details

Social Responsibility Journal, vol. 7 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-1117

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 June 2017

Jon Aarum Andersen

This paper aims to assess the concept of managerial discretion with respect to its theoretical and empirical usefulness for corporate governance research.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to assess the concept of managerial discretion with respect to its theoretical and empirical usefulness for corporate governance research.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper scrutinises applied theoretical claims, definitions and methods, as well as a number of empirical studies on managerial discretion.

Findings

To date, no empirical definition of the concept has been presented and no measurement has been developed and tested for reliability and validity that contains all three factors of the managerial discretion concept, as proposed by Hambrick and Finkelstein (1987).

Practical implications

Research on managerial discretion does not provide owners and directors of boards with any advice on granting top managers a high or low degree of discretion.

Originality/value

This paper concludes that corporate governance scholarship will improve if it abandons the concept of managerial discretion.

Details

Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, vol. 17 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1472-0701

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 June 2006

Nada K. Kakabadse, Eddy Louchart and Andrew Kakabadse

Many criticisms questioning the role and the efficiency of business consultants have been addressed. However, although a great deal of research has been carried out on business…

10404

Abstract

Purpose

Many criticisms questioning the role and the efficiency of business consultants have been addressed. However, although a great deal of research has been carried out on business consultancy, little has been written on business consultancy from the consultant's viewpoint. In order to gain a detailed view of the situation from an internal consultant's perspective, an investigation of how business consultants perceive their role and contribution within their clients' organisations was undertaken. Drawing on different perspectives, this study aims to demystify the role of business consultants, and to ascertain how they perceive their role within their clients' organisations.

Design/methodology/approach

A series of interviews were conducted, where business consultants were asked to comment on issues related to the nature of the relationship with their clients, the pros and cons of their role and also the amount of control and discretion they exercise over the different projects in which they are engaged. Interview data from 17 business consultants from a variety of fields, such as change management, information technology, corporate finance and human resource, are analysed using an interpretive frame.

Findings

The research findings reveal that differences exist between the rather pejorative conclusions of previous research and the conclusions of this study. Whereas previous research highlighted the omnipotence and the more or less deontological practice of consultants, the data analysis from this study concludes that business consultants appear very humble in their approach to their relationship with clients, and believe that moving clients forward is their ultimate goal. The findings also enable the study to demonstrate that business consultants are conscious of the amount of control and discretion that is passed on to them by clients, and do recognise that criticisms of their role can be at times justified.

Originality/value

The study has value for both consultants and clients. The role determinants model presented in the study highlights the main characteristics of the role of business consultants and helps both clients and consultants to rethink their approach to the consulting process.

Details

Journal of Management Development, vol. 25 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0262-1711

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 November 2019

Jon Aarum Andersen

This paper aims to demonstrate the efforts of Hay Youssef and Tang (2019) to reaffirm the importance of managerial discretion is unsuccessful.

217

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to demonstrate the efforts of Hay Youssef and Tang (2019) to reaffirm the importance of managerial discretion is unsuccessful.

Design/methodology/approach

Theoretical frameworks from traditional and recent literature on the concept of managerial discretion are related to corporate governance scholarship.

Findings

There are in fact no studies on managerial discretion based on explicit theoretical and empirical definitions and thus no studies published which have measured the degrees of managers’ discretion. The conclusion is that the inability to define the notion of managerial discretion is tantamount to the inability to research it.

Practical implications

Research on managerial discretion does not provide any advice to owners and directors of boards on granting top executives a high or a low degree of discretion.

Originality/value

This paper reaffirms the conclusion of Andersen (2017) that corporate governance scholarship will improve if it abandons the concept of managerial discretion.

Details

Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, vol. 20 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1472-0701

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 October 2018

Moustafa Salman Haj Youssef and Da Teng

The purpose of this study is to refute the work of Andersen (2017) by suggesting a different theoretical view and to argue that the concept of managerial discretion is one of the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to refute the work of Andersen (2017) by suggesting a different theoretical view and to argue that the concept of managerial discretion is one of the core dimensions that cannot be discarded when studying corporate governance.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses theoretical frameworks from recent literature, definitions and empirical studies on the concept of managerial discretion and corporate governance.

Findings

Several studies have empirically tested and measured the concept of managerial discretion, some have provided validity and reliability of the concept and others have showed the direct impact of discretion on firm performance.

Practical implications

Research on managerial discretion provides owners and board of directors a clear advice on how much discretion can be granted to top executives by taking into consideration the different dimensions of the external and internal environment.

Originality/value

This paper concludes that corporate governance research will not improve if it abandons the concept of managerial discretion.

Details

Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, vol. 19 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1472-0701

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 July 2018

Maria Chiara Demartini and Sara Trucco

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of the use of subjective (objective) performance measures on relevant organisational outcomes, namely perceived managerial

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of the use of subjective (objective) performance measures on relevant organisational outcomes, namely perceived managerial discretion (PMD) and manager’s satisfaction with the performance measurement system (PMS). Furthermore, the paper analyses the indirect link between subjective vs objective measures and managers’ satisfaction through PMD.

Design/methodology/approach

To test the research hypotheses, a paper-based questionnaire was sent to Italian health care managers in Lombardy. Thus, a PLS-SEM analysis was performed on a data set of 97 Italian health care managers.

Findings

Empirical findings showed that objective measures are more capable of supporting the managerial perception of discretion when compared to more subjective ones such as “fads” and “fashions”, and that managers are more satisfied with the PMS when it is grounded on objective measures rather than subjective ones.

Originality/value

The paper operationalizes and empirically tests the measure of PMD, linking this to antecedents and consequences. It also extends the literature on subjectivity in the PMS, since it develops new knowledge on the choice between subjective and objective measures by applying this choice to a variety of PMS, whereas prior literature on objective vs subjective measures has mainly focussed on performance evaluation.

Article
Publication date: 1 July 2005

Gregorio Sánchez Marín and Antonio Aragón Sánchez

This paper analyzes the effect of strategic context on managerial compensation design, and the interactive influence on firm performance for a set of Spanish companies…

886

Abstract

This paper analyzes the effect of strategic context on managerial compensation design, and the interactive influence on firm performance for a set of Spanish companies. Specifically, this study examines the performance implications of the fit between different managerial compensation systems and diverse firm’s strategic orientations – representing various levels of managerial discretion. Based on a framework combining agency theory and managerial discretion concept, a research design with both archival and survey data is used to test hypotheses in a sample of 82 firms. The findings offer sufficient confirmation of theoretical arguments, providing extensions of this research stream for non‐U.S. firms. Results show that firms benefit from the design of managerial compensation systems when they match the managerial control and risk‐bearing requirements imposed by the strategic context. Specifically, risk‐encouraging compensation systems are better for prospector firms – high level of managerial discretion – whereas risk‐discouraging compensation systems are better for defender firms – low level of managerial discretion.

Details

Management Research: Journal of the Iberoamerican Academy of Management, vol. 3 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1536-5433

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 November 2017

Moustafa Salman Haj Youssef and Ioannis Christodoulou

The purpose of this paper is to broaden the national-level construct of managerial discretion and to investigate the effect of cultural practices on executive discretion.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to broaden the national-level construct of managerial discretion and to investigate the effect of cultural practices on executive discretion.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a sample of six Arabian countries and using a panel of prominent cross-cultural scholars who provided 262 discretion scores for the sample countries, the authors replicate and extend the national framework of Crossland and Hambrick (2011) in a new cultural context. The cultural dimensions were measured using survey responses of middle managers based on House et al.’s (2004) cultural practices scale.

Findings

The authors extend the national-level framework of managerial discretion and find that an encompassing array of cultural practices plays a crucial role in shaping the degree of discretion provided to CEOs. The authors empirically demonstrate that power distance, future and performance orientation, along with gender egalitarianism and assertiveness have positive relationships with managerial discretion. However, institutional collectivism, uncertainty avoidance and humane orientation negatively affect the degree of discretion provided to CEOs.

Originality/value

The study fills a gap in the literature regarding the national-level framework of managerial discretion. The results indicate that executives can take idiosyncratic and bold actions to the extent to which the cultural environment allows them to do so. Also, the authors discover new national-level antecedents of managerial discretion that have not been considered in earlier studies and confirm the context dependency of this concept.

Details

Journal of Strategy and Management, vol. 10 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1755-425X

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 27 July 2012

James K. Summers, Timothy P. Munyon, Annette L. Ranft, Gerald R. Ferris and M. Ronald Buckley

Executives exert a pervasive influence on the organizations they lead. As such, scholars have long considered how to calibrate the risks inherent in executive decision making…

Abstract

Executives exert a pervasive influence on the organizations they lead. As such, scholars have long considered how to calibrate the risks inherent in executive decision making, often relying on incentives and compensation to calibrate executive risk behavior. However, there are shortcomings that reduce the efficacy of this approach, largely because incentives and compensation do not alter the work environment itself, which play a significant role influencing executive risk behavior. Consequently, in this chapter, we propose a conceptualization that integrates executive risk-taking with work design, framing three central features of the strategic leader job and work environment that may be manipulated to channel and shape executive risk-taking. Specifically, accountability, discretion, and relationships are proposed as the key higher-order characteristics of the executive work context, and they are examined with respect to optimal calibration in order to maximize both executive performance and well-being, as well as organizational coordination and control. Implications of this conceptualization and directions for future research are discussed.

Details

Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78190-172-4

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